Best Abdominal Exercises with No Equipment

Toned, washboard abs will keep your partner happy and boost your self-confidence with every outfit you put on. So get ready to pull those tight pants out of your dresser, this is the abs workout guide to six-pack abs and a flat, toned, strong core!

Abs Exercises No Equipment Required

Unlike other body parts, you can train your abdominal muscles every day. You can do many of these exercises with little to no equipment, in the comfort of your home. These exercises should be done in 2-3 sets of 15-25 reps, or 2-3 sets of 60-second intervals. Rest between sets should be between 30-60 seconds. Each of the exercises below have links to videos where you can watch them demonstrated.

Reverse Push Up

Reverse pushups will work out your shoulders, chest, triceps, and upper back and lower back in addition to your core.

Keep a steady base with your hands under your shoulders and slowly lower your feet on the ground.

Lateral Wall Run Exercise

Running at an angle will increase muscle strength by forcing your body to work harder than it would during a regular run. Lateral runs will result in better balance, flexibility, and coordination.

Drive your foot furthest from the wall into the ground, while pulling your knee closest to the wall towards your chest.

Do 8 to 12 reps before switching sides.

Inchworm Slide Exercise

For best results, perform inchworm slides on a hardwood floor, where standing on a towel would easily slide along the surface. You can also do inchworm slides on a carpet, with a Frisbee or book beneath your feet to slide, which makes this an exercise you can do in your home.

Three-point Touch

The first touch is bringing your leg beneath your body, twisting your hips and extending your foot to one side so that your leg is perpendicular to your arms.

Next bring the foot back to the middle starting position for the second touch.

For the final touch bring that same foot extended to the opposite side as touch number one.

Repeat these steps for the other foot and do as many touches as you can in one minute.

The Hundred

Raise your feet and bend your knees back towards your chest, curl your head neck, and shoulders and raise your hands a few inches from the ground. Then extend your legs at a 45-degree angle into Pilates stance.

Oblique Crunches

Place your right hand and left hand behind your head and drop both knees to one side.

Lift your shoulder blades off the mat without pulling on your head for 20-25 reps before switching your knees to the opposite side.

Plate Twist

Sit on the floor with your legs extended, feet off the ground, knees slightly bent, and your torso upright.

Grab the plate with both hands and keep it positioned in front of your abdominals with a slight bend in your arms.

Twist your upper body touching the plate to the floor on your left side and then alternating it to the floor on your right side.

Russian Twist

These have the same starting position as a plate twist, without the weight.

The twisting should be done in a controlled motion while focusing on controlled breathing and managing your balance.

If you want to add some weight, try a light medicine ball rather than going for a heavy plate.

You need to work hard for abdominal muscles. Following the proper diet and exercise guidelines in this article will have you showing off your toned, flat stomach in no time! Don't forget to take a look at my list of the best ab machines for equipment to assist in your quest for rock hard, washboard abs.

Bulking

Many women can become too concerned with the number they see on their bathroom scale. You might think if that number is getting higher, something is wrong. A proper bulking regimen may add a couple of pounds to your scale, but the results in your mirror will tell a different story.

The basic concept of bulking is to consume more calories than you are burning off in your workout. If you are looking for some clean foods to add to your bulking diet, try chicken, turkey, rice, pasta, fish, eggs, peanut butter, steak, and yogurt. Usually, exercises that work out your abs are done in sets of about 20 repetitions.

During bulking, pick three ab exercises per day that involve some weights or added resistance. Do reps of 10-12 for three sets each to increase the size of your abs. Some of the exercises options to chose from are cable crunches, Russian twists, hanging right leg raises, decline crunches and abdominal machines. I've outlined these exercises in detail below.

Cutting for abs

One excellent way to prepare for summer or a vacation where you'll be in a bathing suit is to implement a cutting routine before your trip. Typically, cutting takes place in the months after you finish bulking. The majority of food choices for your cutting diet can remain the same as your bulking diet if you just eat less of them; these are all healthy foods.

Make sure to drink plenty of water while you are cutting. Don’t think that cutting means you have to starve yourself! You should still be eating three meals per day, with a snack or two mixed in if need be. Continue to eat foods that are high in protein, but cut out some of the carbs like bread and pasta.

An important aspect of both bulking and cutting is cardiovascular workouts. During the bulking phase, skipping cardio can cause you to gain fat from the excess calories instead of gaining clean muscle. When you are cutting, cardio exercises help ensure that fat gained from your bulking phase get burned off.

Running, biking, and swimming are all cardio exercises that you can pair with these workouts. Other exercises focused on a strong core can double as a cardio workout if you do them at a fast pace, 60 seconds or longer. Some of these exercises include wall push-ups, hot potato squats, mogul jumps, and kettlebell juggling, which are all outlined in the article above.

Can I get a six-pack in 30 days?

You’d have to do a lot of exercises such as sit-ups, crunches, plank position, and even pull-ups to tone your abdominal muscles. To define your muscles and work your inner core, you can do butterfly crunches, side planks, and bridges. But the most important part of all of this doing cardio for 6 days a week.

Is it good to do abs exercises daily? How many times a week should I do abs to get a six-pack?

You can train abs daily, but it’s probably not necessary. Though abs can be trained more frequently than other muscle groups, rest and recovery are always wise. Training every other day is ideal, or you can do an arrangement like two days on, one day off.

Do abs need a rest day?

Yes, they do. It’s a good idea to make sure your muscles are rested. But abs don’t generally require the same amount of rest as other muscles.

Can abs workouts lose belly fat?

No, you can’t lose belly fat through ab exercises alone. In fact, there are no exercises that specifically target belly fat; you have to focus on total body fat loss. For more details, check my guide on burning belly fat.

Can ab workouts cause hernia?

Dr. Michel Rosen said that hernias are unavoidable and never been linked to heavy lifting or any particular exercise. For more details on this topic, I recommend consulting a medical professional.

Looking for more awesome workouts that you can do from home? Click here.